Brave seven-year-old to lead out Stoke City as players’ hero after gruelling cancer ordeal
Inspirational little Oliver Royles will lead out his beloved Stoke City this Friday after coming through 14 months of gruelling cancer treatment.
The seven-year-old Stoke fan has been taken to heart by the club’s players and staff, visiting Clayton Wood as a VIP in December and then being invited back again this month after finally ringing his end of treatment bell.
Oliver, from Wood Lane, and his brother Ashley, who is 18 months older, were treated royally and they will be at the front of the tunnel with captain Viktor Johansson when the team heads out to play Sheffield Wednesday in front of a near full house at the bet365 Stadium.
“They loved it going down for training,” said mum Katie. “All of them, whether it was the manager or the players, made a real fuss of them both and gave them goalie gloves and football boots.
“Oliver had already been down while he was still going through his treatment and he had no hair. This was a follow-up now that he’s been able to ring the bell. They all knew who he was, remembered his story and were very kind.
“I’m an emotional wreck and I’ll be crying in the corner when he leads out the team on Friday. The boys will be walking out together.
“There have been so many people who have followed Oliver’s journey and I’ve had incredible messages of support from people I don’t even know. It’s not like an end to everything but it’s a fantastic moment.”
Oliver had been complaining about a bad back when he was diagnosed with cancer in February 2024. The family went to their GP then to Royal Stoke for an x-ray before being told to return for an MRI scan. Results from a biopsy showed he had Ewing sarcoma.
He would need repeated rounds of chemotherapy at Royal Stoke, six weeks of proton therapy in Manchester and two weeks of radiotherapy at Birmingham.
Katie, aged 32, said: “When we started we didn’t know what to think. He just had a bad back and then we were told it was cancer and it came to a point when he couldn’t even walk because the tumour was affecting the nerves in his spine.
“He would have a week of chemo, then a week off when you could guarantee that he would have to go back in because he’d have a spike in temperature.
“But, remarkably, Oliver has taken everything in his stride. He’s been incredibly brave.
“When he finished his treatment he had to have an MRI scan and CT scan to check the tumour in his spine and the Hickman lines that had to be put in his chest he’s now put in a jar so he can show his friends.”
Oliver has just been able to return to Wood Lane primary school. He still has to use a wheelchair occasionally but he’s still building up strength and he was able to have a kickaround at Stoke with his favourite player, Lynden Gooch.
Gooch is a mate now too, having got in touch with the family when Oliver’s dad Chris went on social media to post Oliver’s painting of him playing for the Potters.
Oliver ran to give Gooch a high five and a hug after getting an ovation from the Stoke changing room, having been taken into the inner sanctum by Jon Walters after a quick word with chairman John Coates.
Katie, who gave up her job in a care home with dementia patients to be Oliver’s full-time carer, said: “In these last couple of weeks he’s just started to go back to school. We managed to get him a tutor so he was having extra help but he’s still had to go from Year One, where they were having fun with Play-Doh, to now doing what he sees as proper work.
“The school has been really good and they’re working hard to fill in the gaps that he’s missed. He’s happy to be back with his friends. They had seen him when we’d go to drop off or pick up Ashley and they’d seen the changes as he lost his hair or had to use a wheelchair.
“The six weeks we had to spend in Manchester were during the summer holidays so it’s a nice feeling just to have a normal school holiday and we’ve just booked a little holiday for August. It’s not even on an aeroplane, just a caravan, but we couldn’t be happier.”
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